European Aviation Clusters Partnership

The European Aerospace Cluster Partnership (EACP) is a permanent partnership between collaborating European aerospace clusters. The consortium currently comprises 40 aerospace clusters from 15 different countries and was initiated by the city of Hamburg in 2009 and co-funded by the European Commission.

The EACP was established in 2009 within the framework of CLUNET, a PRO INNO EUROPE project that not only encouraged the exchange of experiences, but also supported the implementation of concrete pilot projects regarding cluster innovation and development policies. Within the last years, the EACP has developed into a permanent partnership between collaborating European aerospace clusters. Although limited to the aerospace industry, the partnership also serves as a benchmark project for other industry sectors. In 2013, the EACP was recognized by the European Commission as one of 13 „European Strategic Cluster Partnerships“ (ESCP). With this acknowledgement, the Commission formally recognizes the EACP’s efforts to improve global competitiveness by supporting pan-European collaboration and implementing joint strategies needed to enter new markets outside of Europe.

The EACP is a networking hub that gives European aerospace clusters a permanent platform for information exchanges, policy studies and mutual cooperation. It is managed by Hamburg Aviation, which is why Hamburg constitutes the focal point for all partners. Hamburg screens calls from the European Union for certain thematic domains, gathers international project proposals, supports the search of project partners and pools all contacts of 34 different aerospace regions in Europe. For more information, see: Hamburg Aviation

The EACP network operates in an informal, decentralized and flexible way that is based on an organizational set of continuous working groups (Skills, Technology, Strategy and Internationalisation), temporary project consortia and bi- or multilateral ad-hoc partnerships. The main objective resides in the global competitiveness in Europe through intense inter-cluster collaboration. This goal is pursued within the three major fields of action: Knowledge exchange (cluster excellence, funding schemes, and role of clusters), push innovation (skills & qualification, EU projects, connecting member clusters) and strengthening the position of the EU (internationalisation, supply chain infrastructure, global competitiveness). All EACP activities follow these guidelines to improve competitiveness in a European context.

The EACP seeks to establish closer inter-cluster relations in order to provide added value to the overall market. It therefore shapes the relationship between clusters, industry stakeholders and policy makers. The EACP further stimulates the creation of innovation, thereby aiming to strengthen the EU’s overall position in the global aerospace market. Its primary objectives can be divided into the following categories:

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